Sri Lanka hires Tom Moody as cricket director

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka hired former Australia international Tom Moody as its cricket director on Sunday in a move to revamp the struggling national team.

Sri Lanka Cricket said Moody was appointed on the advice of the board's cricket committee. His responsibilities will include focusing on the domestic cricket structure, player welfare, coaching and support staff structure, and high performance and data analysis.

It's a three-year contract.

Moody was coach when Sri Lanka reached the final of the 2007 World Cup final which was won by Australia.

Sri Lanka has declined significantly over the last five years. Recent test series defeats against South Africa and England sparked strong criticism and prompted authorities to appoint a cricket committee of former international stars Aravinda de Silva, Muttiah Muralitharan, Roshan Mahanama and Kumar Sangakkara.

Sri Lanka plays West Indies in their opening Twenty20 game on Wednesday in Antigua.

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